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HEAVY PETTING is a hilarious and salacious exploration of the sexual mores of the 50's as seen through the eyes of a generation that lived through the Sexual Revolution. Creative baby boomers-- including musician David Byrne, performance artist Spalding Gray, comedian Sandra Bernhard, radical activist Abbie Hoffman, and poet Allen Ginsberg-- candidly recall their sexual coming-f-age tales in intimate interviews. Joyously campy and refreshingly carefree, HEAVY PETTING blends humorous, unbelievable footage of unhelpful sex-ed films with classic snippets of THE WILD ONE and Elvis' hip gyrations, not to mention Bernhard talking about playing "doctor", always observant Ginsberg on a disastrous encounter with a girl, and Byrne on the childhood myths of masturbation. Eternal mysteries such as the female orgasm, the universal appeal of Marilyn Monroe, and the rituals of high school are laid bare by this lovable group of characters.Written by
aitnyc@aol.com

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In this day and age, no one can resist poking fun at 1950s sexual mores. "Heavy Petting" (a term referring to non-penetrative sex) is a look at those mores, featuring interviews with famous people who discuss how they learned about sex during that era, interspersed with footage from 1950s sex ed films. It's really funny to hear the interviewees (among them Spalding Gray and David Byrne) describe their first sexual experiences. I guess that a sad irony is that even in the 21st century, Americans still have a childish attitude towards sex (which among other things, means that we have unwanted pregnancies than most industrialized countries). But otherwise it's a really good, really funny documentary. It's amazing how, even though sexuality was officially repressed, so much of the culture seemed overtly sexual (just look at Elvis's dancing). I recommend it.

"I think he called it a 'dick'." Indeed!

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